In an electric stapler, a staple at inside of a staple cartridge is supplied to a strike out portion and is struck out by a strike out mechanism. Inside of the staple cartridge is contained with connected staples connecting straight staples in a sheet-like shape or a strip-like shape. The sheet-like staples are contained by being laminated in multistages and the strip-like staples are contained by being wound in a roll-like shape.
There is a mechanism of detecting whether connected staples remain in a staple cartridge at a stapler main body as a mechanism for detecting staples (JP-A-2003-062765). Further, there is a detecting mechanism of detecting whether a staple supplied from a staple cartridge is present at a guide portion (JP-A-2002-079475). The former detecting mechanism is constituted by a structure of arranging a sensor for detecting a presence/absence of a staple at a staple guide portion formed between a staple discharge port of the staple cartridge and a strike out portion at a front end of the staple cartridge. According to the latter detecting mechanism, a hole is opened at the staple cartridge itself, and a sensor is operated by vacating the hole by passing a final staple through the hole.
When it is detected that the front end of the staple cartridge reaches a portion of mounting a cartridge main body, a control portion determines that the staple cartridge is mounted to the mounting portion and finishes to prepare a binding operation. When the instruction of the binding operation is issued under the state, the mechanism of striking out the staple is operated.
Meanwhile, there are a staple cartridge which is disposed after consuming up staples at inside thereof and a staple cartridge which is reused. The reused type staple cartridge is constituted such that a refill contained with staples at inside of the case is made to be attachable and detachable to and from a cartridge main body, when all of the staples in the refill have been consumed, only the refill is removed and a separate refill is mounted.
However, although a problem is not posed when the refill is normally mounted to the mounting portion of the cartridge main body in the reused type, when the refill is halfly set (incompletely mounted), the refill is not engaged with a feed claw of a mechanism of feeding out staples in the refill from a guide portion to a strike out portion and therefore, the staples are not fed even when a feed mechanism is operated. Therefore, binding is not carried out after striking out staples remaining in the guide portion.